An Unlikely Lady Macbeth
by wimseyfive87
Summary: A scene that should have occured in "Dead Air". Morgan freaks out after failing to stop Denny from killing himself. Hodges is there to calm her and help her and maybe more.


Morgan couldn't stop wiping the blood from her hands. She had used a towel, soap and water, alcohol wipes – everything that had been in the back of the ambulance. It didn't matter what she did – she couldn't make the blood disappear or shake the image of Denny killing himself from her mind.

After taking her statement, the unis had left her alone. Russel worked the crime scene and tried his best to shoo away the press. They swarmed the news station crime scene like flies scavenging a corpse.

The way the press wouldn't leave the scene alone made Morgan sick. They usually harassed the CSIs at every crime scene. She got it – they needed their scoop, needed to inform the public of any threats to city safety. But actually witnessing a murder, scenting the blood in the air, turned them into monsters. They just would not leave.

Morgan managed to sneak away from the onslaught and found a dark corner inside the news station to hide. Outside was chaos, inside – the sight of the original crime scene – was strangely calm. Morgan tried to choke down a coffee and ignore the blood still on her hands.

She lost track of time. She was lost in a haze of anger and shock. The scene played over and over in her mind like a sick, twisted horror film. She thought she'd never have to worry about nightmares ever again.

A noise broke into the haze of her mind. Footsteps. She looked up to see Hodges walking towards her. He wore his CSI vest, ready to help in the field. Morgan couldn't remember anyone calling him, but was instantly glad to see him. She hadn't realized how much she had longed to see him after the day's incident.

"Hey, are you ok?" he asked, settling down beside her. "I came down as soon as I heard what happened. If anybody asks, I'm picking up evidence."

"Can you believe those vultures outside?" he continued. "They practically attacked me as soon as I drove up. Asking me questions like, did I have any dirt on Teresa's love life? Who do I look like? Ryan Seacrest?"

Morgan smiled for the first time in what seemed like hours. That was her Hodges, rambling on as usual. It didn't matter what he talked about – she realized she could listen to him forever. His voice soothed her fried nerves, calmed her racing heart, caressed her wounded conscience. She didn't wonder why he affected her this way. Deep down she already knew the answer.

"Are you really ok?" he asked, finally noticing she wasn't yelling at him to shut up. His kind blue eyes watched her with concern mixed with something deeper than friendly affection. She felt like she could tell him anything – he was her best friend.

"I tried to help him," she said, the suicide playing again before her eyes. "I kept talking to him, pleading with him. I told him, he didn't really want to hurt anyone. We wouldn't hurt him either. All he had to do was give me the knife and we'd be able to help him. All he had to do was give me the knife.

"I was right in front of him. The knife was inches away. He was looking right at me, Hodges. It was like he was begging me to help him, but I couldn't get there soon enough. Then it was like he just gave up. He stabbed himself. It's like he thought no one would ever believe him.  
"I should have gotten there sooner. I should have tried hard to convince him we weren't going to hurt him. I should have done more. I should have done _something_."

She had started rubbing her hands, as if she still was washing the blood away. She refused to look at them, positive they were stained forever with Denny's blood. It would be her mark, her stain on her soul for not doing enough to save him. He had been a weird, strange man, and perhaps a murderer, but he hadn't deserved to die as he did.

Hodges gently took Morgan's shaking hands into his own to stop her from rubbing them raw. He gently caressed them until she stopped shaking. His touch seemed to calm her as much as his voice.

"Morgan, it's not your fault. You did everything you could to save him."

"But I was right there-"

"And you tried to stop him, but he thought he didn't have any other choice. He thought it was his only way out. There was nothing you could have done to stop him."

"Then why can't I wash his blood off my hands?" she asked, looking up at him with agony in her eyes.

"There isn't any blood on your hands," he told her quietly. She looked down and realized he was right. Her hands were only red from rubbing them too hard. She stared at them for the longest time, unable to believe she had imagined it all. She watched as Hodges slowly rubbed his thumb over the top of one hand. The tender sight slowly blurred as tears filled her eyes. Inside her heart she realized that only Hodges could have made her see the truth so clearly.

"Oh my God," she whispered. Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his neck and let the tears come. At first she felt Hodges stiffen, then he relaxed and wrapped his own arms around her.

As she cried, he just held her. He didn't try to kiss her or feel her up, as other boyfriends had done in the past. Instead, he rocked her gently, caressing her hair and whispered sweet nonsense into her ear. She realized she only allowed herself to break down like this because she was in the safety of his arms. She was in the safest place in the world with Hodges. He understood all her secrets and dreams, whether good or bad. He wasn't disgusted at her guilt today or embarrassed by it. He wanted only to comfort her, cheer her and maker her realize that even though Denny's suicide was a horrible thing, it wasn't her fault. She did all she could have done to save him. It would be a long time before she was ok with what happened, but at least she had stopped panicking and washing the blood from her hands.

Soon the tears subsided to quiet sniffles. Even then she didn't want to move. She felt so happy, content and safe in the circle of Hodges' arms. The world, Las Vegas, the crime lab – all disappeared behind her and Hodges. She could feel his heart beat against hers, a welcome rhythm that felt so normal, so right.

Slowly she raised her head to look up at him. The look in his eyes took her breath away. It was so full of love and concern – exactly mirroring the emotions in her own heart. A flame of hope kindled inside of her chest – he felt the same feelings? He gently stroked her cheek, causing her to smile a smile of complete happiness. With a look of wonder on his face, she watched him move in close to kiss her. She closed her eyes, her body tingling in glorious anticipation.

A door crashed open into the studio. Voices talking, feet shuffling. Morgan and Hodges split apart, the moment broken. She hastily wiped her face of tears. Beside her, she heard Hodges clearing his throat and composing himself just as she did.

Russell came into view. "Morgan, there you are. Why don't you head home, clean yourself up and meet Sara, Greg, Finn and myself back her for a little experiment I want to run."

"But Denny-"

"I have a funny feeling Denny didn't kill Theresa. It just doesn't track."

"What-"

"I'll explain it all later. Just meet back here around seven, ok? Great. Oh and Hodges -"

"Yeah, I was just -"  
"Thanks for being here," Russell said. A slight twinkle in his eye was not missed by Morgan. He turned and walked out of the studio, leaving two unis behind to guard the crime scene.

Morgan and Hodges stood up. Both looked at each other awkwardly – both were embarrassed. Morgan didn't know what to say. She had felt so much in the last few minutes. She felt dizzy as if she had been chucked into a whirlwind. All she knew for certain was that her feelings for Hodges were all too clear.

"Uh, I guess I should get back to the lab. Lots to do to finish the case." Hodges uncertainly turned towards the exit.

"I should go home and get some rest."

"I think that's a really good idea," he agreed quickly. Morgan smiled.

"Thank you for coming. I – I don't know if I would have handled things without you. Thanks."

"Anytime. Really, Morgan. You can talk to me anytime."

Morgan shared a long look with Hodges. She didn't have to say the words – they were all in her eyes.

"I'll talk to you later," she said, heading towards the door.

"Yeah, great. I look forward to it," he said.

At the door, they did a little jig, trying to decide who would go through first. Hodges then dove for the door and opened it for her. Morgan smiled at his sweetness, barely suppressing a giggle at the same time.

Outside, Morgan watched as Hodges head for his car beyond the yellow police tape. At the tape, he paused and turned to look at Morgan. He gave her one last smile. It warmed Morgan straight to her soul. She then watched as he ducked under the tape and headed for his car.

Smiling to herself, Morgan slipped under the police tape on her side of the scene and headed for her own car. She felt good now, but after today's events knew it would be a long time before everything was ok. Down the road, at least, there was a ray of love waiting to shower her with happiness.


End file.
